INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
In March, the female-led media company and newsletter provider theSkimm reported it was raising a $12 million Series C from Google
Ventures and Spanx founder Sara Blakely, along with several existing investors
Today, the company is confirming its Series C round has closed with a number of new, mostly female investors joining — including big names
like Shonda Rhimes and Tyra Banks.Variety was the first to report the news of the new investors.The Series C’s additional investors
include former TV journalist Willow Bay, now dean at the USC Anneberg School for Communication and Journalism; Jesse Draper of Halogen
Ventures; Shonda Rhimes; founder and CEO of GingerBread Capital, Linnea Roberts; CEO of ELY Capital, Hope Taitz; as well as the Goldman
Sachs Group, Inc.; and Michael Karsch of Juice Press.Earlier Series C investors included GV (formerly Google Ventures); Spanx founder Sara
Blakely; plus former lead investors 21st Century Fox, RRE Ventures and Homebrew Ventures.TheSkimm began its life as an email newsletter,
founded by former TV news producers Carly Zakin and Danielle Weisberg
The newsletter targets millennial women who want an easy way to keep up with the key news of the day
What makes the product so appealing is how it’s written in a conversational tone, making it accessible to a wide audience who often finds
reading the news a dreary but necessary chore
Mixed in with its highlights from key U.S., political and international news are samplings of stories from pop culture and the entertainment
industry, which gives the newsletter a bit of a palate cleanser — something that’s much appreciated these days.That newsletter has now
grown to around 7 million subscribers, the company says
(This is the same number it reported in March.)The company has also expanded to other products since its launch, including a $2.99 per month
subscription-based app for keeping up with upcoming news and televised events, a podcast, as well as original videos for YouTube and
Facebook Watch via its production arm, Skimm Studios.Its video offerings include Skimm’d with…” and “Get Off the Couch” for
Facebook, and digital series “Sip n’ Skimm,” which landed an interview with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, followed by a
discussion with House Speaker Paul Ryan assessing the proposed GOP tax plan.Meanwhile, theSkimm’s podcast, “Skimm’d from The
1 on Apple Podcasts hours after its launch.The company generates revenue from a variety of sources, including its app subscriptions, native
ads, affiliate, content licensing and distribution, theSkimm notes in an announcement
The company is not offering revenue details, however.“As a female led and founded company, we are excited to have the opportunity to bring
such an impressive and dynamic group of female investors into theSkimm fold,” co-founders and co-CEOs Zakin and Weisberg, said in a
“With a majority of our audience being female, it’s vital to the success of our business to involve women at every single level, and
that includes our investors
With their added perspective and resources, we look forward to this next chapter in our company’s history.”Banks added she had a
personal appreciation for the product, in addition to her desire to support female entrepreneurs.“Going from one business meeting, to the
next studio set, and as a new mama, it’s more difficult than ever to stay up to date on the day’s headlines,” the media mogul said
“theSkimm created a media platform that works seamlessly with on-the-go lifestyles
As a fervent supporter of trailblazing female-led businesses, I am thrilled to be a part of the next phase of theSkimm’s development,”
Banks said.The company didn’t offer many specifics in terms of how it plans to utilize the additional capital, but told us that it plans
to “continue evolving the brand” and grow its product offerings — both premium and free
One of its plans involves expanding its No Excuses political-engagement campaign, reports Variety, which registered 110,000 U.S
voters.New York-based theSkimm has 72 full-time employees and has raised $29 million to date.
